The Only Solution
Peers, I want to talk to you today about a very serious topic that has interested me for a long time, and it could be the most important thing you learn about driving, but may have only been briefly addressed in driver’s education. We have all seen the ads. The driver’s takes his or her eyes off the road, and three seconds, maybe four, the driver’s life is changed forever by a horrible accident. These are hard images to grasp, and the scary thing is that it could happen to absolutely anybody. You need to understand that driving is a substantial responsibility, and if you choose to text while driving, you are putting not only yourself, but other drivers and pedestrians at risk. Our government has been applying patches and palliative to this issue, but it is time for a final decision. As an active member of this liable society, I strongly believe this is a social problem; therefore it is the national government itself that, through its representative institutions, should pass a law at the federal level that states that all cars that traverse the U.S.A have a non-removable microchip, which would neutralize the driver’s phone’s ability to text.
I know how hard it can be to put your phone down and concentrate on the road, and I know you may think it only takes 1 second to check your phone; however the average text takes your eyes off the road for a minimal of 5 seconds. That is plenty of time for a terrible accident to occur. Imagine this; in 2011 nearly 1.3 million crashes were reported only from texting and driving. How many sons, daughters, wives, and husbands do you think that includes? If this law is put in place, the risk and the amount of crashes due to texting would reduce noticeably. I completely understand that emergencies exist, so if you absolutely need to respond to a text, you can pull over to a safe place, or wait till you reach your destination.
Not being able to text while in your car will help you operate your vehicle without any distractions. Statistics show that teens who text and drive spent approximately 10% of their driving time outside of their lanes, but most of them can’t realize that because they are not looking. I know most of you are drivers now, and I am almost 100% sure that this law could probably help to save your life in the future. Consider this; according to many experts, texting while driving can increase reaction time as much as if you had .08% blood alcohol concentration. This is a no brainer. 39 states, including D.C, have already banned texting while in vehicles, so some may say my law is unnecessary, yet many drivers still choose to do the wrong thing. The problem with those laws is that careless people will continue to do it, as long as they don’t get caught. This law will eliminate any chances for them to text or read text messages; therefore protecting you and everyone else.
Some of you may have seen your parents or other adult text while driving while they were with you, but I can assure you that doesn’t make it any more secure. This is one of those cases where you need to do as your parents say, not as they do. I’m sure most parents will concur with this law because they could not bear the thought of something happening to their children. The same goes for you; you would not want to see your brother, sister, mom, dad or anybody close to you stuck in hospital because they made a stupid decision that could have been prevented. Chances are we will all know someone that's been involved in a car accident due to texting, but I want to reduce those chances to zero. I know this law may seem a bit extreme or excessive, but this is the only way to stop this once and for all.